Grocery shopping
Hacer la compra
- Write a grocery list for daily food and drinks.
- Ask a shop assistant about a product in the supermarket.
- Verbs with stem changes: "e → i, e → ie, ..."
Learn essential Spanish vocabulary for grocery shopping like el mercado (market), el pescado (fish), and el yogur (yogurt), while practicing key verbs with stem changes such as querer (to want) and volver (to return). This lesson prepares you to navigate stores and prepare romantic dinners with confidence.
Listening & reading materials
Practice vocabulary in context with real materials.
Vocabulary (16) Share Copied!
Exercises Share Copied!
These exercises can be done together during conversation lessons or as homework.
Exercise 1: Reorder sentences
Instruction: Make correct sentences and translate.
Exercise 2: Match a word
Instruction: Match the translations
Exercise 3: Cluster the words
Instruction: Classify the words into two categories based on where they are found or what type of products they are for daily shopping.
Lugares para comprar
Alimentos y bebidas
Exercise 4: Translate and use in a sentence
Instruction: Pick a word, translated and use the word in a sentence or dialogue.
1
La compra
The purchase
2
La caja
The box
3
La lista de la compra
The shopping list
4
El mercado
The market
5
El carrito de la compra
The shopping trolley
Ejercicio 5: Conversation exercise
Instrucción:
- Describe the items on the shopping list. (Describe the items on the shopping list.)
- Ask the shop assistant for the location of the products. (Ask the shop assistant for the location of the products.)
- Pay for your products at the checkout. (Pay for your products at the checkout.)
Teaching guidelines +/- 10 minutes
Example phrases:
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¿Dónde está / están ...? Where is / are ...? |
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¿Podrías ayudarme un momento, por favor? Could you help me for a moment, please? |
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¿Me puede dar un recibo? Could I have a receipt? |
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¿Está este producto en oferta? Is this product on sale? |
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¿Puedo pagar en efectivo / con tarjeta? Can I pay in cash / by card? |
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¿Tienes una bolsa? Do you have a bag? |
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¿Es correcto este precio? Is this price correct? |
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¿Puedo ayudarte? Can I help you? |
| ... |
Exercise 6: Dialogue Cards
Instruction: Select a situation and practice the conversation with your teacher or fellow students.
Exercise 7: Multiple Choice
Instruction: Choose the correct solution
1. Yo ______ comprar fruta fresca en el mercado.
(I ______ to buy fresh fruit at the market.)2. Tú ______ a casa con el carrito lleno.
(You ______ home with the full cart.)3. Ella ______ ayuda para encontrar el yogur natural.
(She ______ for help to find the natural yogurt.)4. Nosotros ______ carne y pescado para la cena.
(We ______ meat and fish for dinner.)Exercise 8: Doing the Grocery Shopping at the Supermarket
Instruction:
Verb Tables
Comprar - Comprar
Presente
- yo compro
- tú compras
- él/ella/Ud. compra
- nosotros compramos
- vosotros compráis
- ellos/ellas/Uds. compran
Querer - Querer
Presente
- yo quiero
- tú quieres
- él/ella/Ud. quiere
- nosotros queremos
- vosotros queréis
- ellos/ellas/Uds. quieren
Volver - Volver
Presente
- yo vuelvo
- tú vuelves
- él/ella/Ud. vuelve
- nosotros volvemos
- vosotros volvéis
- ellos/ellas/Uds. vuelven
Ir - Ir
Presente
- yo voy
- tú vas
- él/ella/Ud. va
- nosotros vamos
- vosotros vais
- ellos/ellas/Uds. van
Continuar - Continuar
Presente
- yo continúo
- tú continúas
- él/ella/Ud. continúa
- nosotros continuamos
- vosotros continuáis
- ellos/ellas/Uds. continúan
Exercise 9: Verbos con cambios de raíz: "e → i, e → ie, ..."
Instruction: Fill in the correct word.
Grammar: Verbs with stem changes: "e → i, e → ie, ..."
Show translation Show answerscierro, prueba, repiten, sueles, empieza, pide, cuesta
Grammar Share Copied!
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A1.20.2 Gramática
Verbos con cambios de raíz: "e → i, e → ie, ..."
Verbs with stem changes: "e → i, e → ie, ..."
Verb conjugation tables for this lesson Share Copied!
Comprar to buy Share Copied!
Presente
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| (yo) compro | I buy |
| (tú) compras | You buy |
| (él/ella) compra | he/she buys |
| (nosotros/nosotras) compramos | we buy |
| (vosotros/vosotras) compráis | You buy |
| (ellos/ellas) compran | they buy |
Querer to want Share Copied!
Presente
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| (yo) quiero | I want |
| (tú) quieres | You want |
| (él/ella) quiere | he/she wants |
| (nosotros/nosotras) queremos | we want |
| (vosotros/vosotras) queréis | You want |
| (ellos/ellas) quieren | they want |
Volver to return Share Copied!
Presente
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| (yo) vuelvo | I return |
| (tú) vuelves | You return |
| (él/ella) vuelve | he returns/she returns |
| (nosotros/nosotras) volvemos | we return |
| (vosotros/vosotras) volvéis | you return |
| (ellos/ellas) vuelven | they return |
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Welcome to the Grocery Shopping Lesson
This lesson is designed for beginner Spanish learners (A1 level) focusing on everyday conversations and vocabulary related to grocery shopping. You'll learn how to talk about places where you shop, typical food items, and useful phrases to make your shopping experience easier and more natural.
Main Topics Covered
- Shopping Places: el supermercado (supermarket), el mercado (market), la caja (checkout), el carrito de la compra (shopping cart).
- Foods and Drinks: el pescado (fish), el yogur (yogurt), el zumo (juice), la fruta (fruit).
- Common Verbs with Stem Changes: Learn verbs like querer (to want), volver (to return), pedir (to ask for), and their present tense forms.
Practical Expressions and Examples
Get comfortable using phrases such as:
- ¿Dónde está el carrito de la compra para hacer la compra más fácil? (Where is the shopping cart to make shopping easier?)
- Necesito comprar fruta y verdura fresca en el mercado hoy. (I need to buy fresh fruit and vegetables at the market today.)
- ¿Puedo pedir ayuda para entender dónde está el pescado en el supermercado? (Can I ask for help to find where the fish is in the supermarket?)
Dialogue Practice
Practice real-life conversations such as asking for fruits and vegetables, making a shopping list, and asking store employees about product locations. Example:
Hola, ¿me puede indicar dónde están las manzanas?
Claro, están al lado de las naranjas.
Verbs and Conjugations
This lesson highlights useful present tense verbs with their stem changes to build practical sentences:
- Comprar (to buy): yo compro, tú compras, él compra...
- Querer (to want): yo quiero, tú quieres, él quiere...
- Volver (to return): yo vuelvo, tú vuelves, él vuelve...
- Ir (to go): yo voy, tú vas, él va...
- Continuar (to continue): yo continúo, tú continúas, él continúa...
Comparison to English
While English uses simple present verbs without stem changes, Spanish includes stem-changing verbs that modify their stem vowel in some conjugations—for example, querer changes e to ie in forms like quiero. Also, Spanish nouns have gender (masculine or feminine), which affects the articles (el for masculine, la for feminine), unlike English. Useful phrases differ as well; for instance,
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